Bratcore?

Yeah, maybe it is about time I explained my "nickname" (just so you know, in my real life, no-one calls me "Bratcore". My real life friends call me Mir, or Mim).

I bought the Atticus album Dragging The Lake 3 almost four years ago while I was studying at the University of Canterbury, largely based on the fact that it featured songs by MxPx and Rise Against. Other favourites came to be The Sounds and VCR, whose song Bratcore was both my cellphone ringtone and my MySpace profile music (yeah, I was once a MySpace kid! God, those were the days). If you don't know the song, here is a pretty fun live version of it.

Anyway.

I've long been referred to as a brat. I think it's because of the way I behave - like I was born with a silver spoon (and make no mistake - I pretty much was), and also because of my failure to grow vertically. I'm a brat. I'm bratty. I like it this way.

The core comes from the phrase "hardcore", which I've re-adapted to suit my own lifestyle: halfcore. Some people have described my approach to some things as "hardcore" (backflips on BMX bikes off ramps, downhill mountain bike races ending in tree faceplants, and of course my love affair with Donny) but I really just don't know. Sure, I still suffer with the deep tissue injuries I suffered from said backflip - the one I landed knees-to-handlebars, not the successful one - but it's nothing compared to the likes of Dave Mirra and Mat Hoffman, who virtually need wheelchairs now for everyday activities. The fact that they still get out and ride every day - Dave with some illegally-performed reconstructive surgery of which I have seen video footage. You want hardcore? You want Dave and Mat. You'll understand now why a two-hour run off a 100km bike ride is just halfcore. I've thought about having it tattooed, a la prisoner, across my knuckles (it fits perfectly), but now I just want BGT (Ben's initials) instead. But tattoos are for another post on another day. It's just too much to deal with right now.

I don't know what "Bratcore" in its original sense means, but I think it serves me well.

Peace and love.